The Soviet Union and Holy See established official relations 15 March 1990.

On 5 September 1991 the Holy See recognized Russia as a successor to the USSR. Russia and the Holy See upgraded their diplomatic relations to full ambassadorial relations in 2009. The increased level of relations followed improvements in the working relationship between the Holy See and the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow.

Prior to 2009, Russian officials remained wary of Catholic influence in Ukraine and tended to treat the Vatican as an international organization, and not a state in traditional sense.